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forget our miserable situation. We could hear the officers busy getting 

 their things into the boats, which were hauled under the stern on purpose, 

 and we heard some of the men on deck swearing that the officers should 

 not go without them. This made some of us start, and so move the 

 irons, upon which the master-at-arms called out, 'Fire upon the rascals !' 

 As he was then just over the scuttle, I spoke to him and said, 'For God's 

 sake don't fire!' In a few minutes one of the boats broke adrift, and 

 having but two men aboard she could not reach the ship again till 

 another boat was sent to bring her back. And now we began to dread 

 they would set off and leave us behind, as it was but natural to expect 

 they would think of themselves first; however, they did return. The 

 booms were next cut loose for the purpose of making a raft, when 

 one of the topmasts fell and killed a man who was helping to heave the 

 guns overboard. At daybreak the following morning, most of the officers 

 came aft on the top of our box, and we could perceive they were armed, 

 and preparing to go into the boats by stern ladders. We begged that 

 we might not be forgotten, when by Captain Edward's order the 

 armourer's mate was sent down into ' Pandora's box' to take the irons off 

 Muspratt, Skinner, and Byrne ; but Skinner being too eager to escape, 

 was hauled out with his handcuffs on, and the other two followed him. 

 The scutde (or door) was then shut close and barred. In the meantime 

 Hodges knocked off my hand-irons and Stuart's, and I begged the 

 master to leave the scuttle open, when he answered, ' Never fear, lads ; 

 we'll all go to hell together !" The words were hardly out of his mouth 

 when the ship give a lurch, and a general cry of ' There she goes ! ' was 

 heard. The master and corporal, with the other sentinels, rolled over- 

 board, and at the same instant we saw Captain Edwards swimming 

 towards the boats. The water was rising fast upon us, and we should 

 soon have been lost if Divine Providence had not put it into the heart 

 of William Moulter (the boatswain's mate) to heed our cries. He 

 scrambled on to the box, and saying he would either set us free or go to 

 the bottom with us, he undid the bolts and opened the scuttle. On this 

 we all got out except one, but it was as much as I could do to clear the 

 ship before she sunk. The boats were now so far off that we could not 



